CM
Masters Student
Posts: 437
Reg: 10-11-18
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01-05-24 08:16 AM - Post#361269
In response to PeteD
I've had the chance to watch complete games of Harvard, Brown, and Penn in their non-conference games and they each have certain issues which could keep them from being, in my mind, the clear cut third ranked team in the league.
-Harvard didn't just lose Turner's points, her injury left them without a functional point guard. Both of their remaining best player - Mullaney and Rodriquez - thrive with a good passer/organizer to get them the ball. Opposing team pressing up on Harvard once they get over half court could effectively remove Mullaney and Rodriguez as threats.
-Brown has flashes of being quite good followed very quickly by flashes of terrible decision making that undo their chances. Kyla Jones is their leading scorer but her iso heavy game will not age well, I fear, when Ivy coaches can prepare for it. In the USF game she single handedly squelched their comeback with some terrible tunnel vision turnovers - she has 2x as many TOs as assists on the season. As well, Mauricio is so undersized I think most coaches will go right at her to play her off the floor. To me, the more Arnolie is used as the hub of the team the better they'll play.
-Penn can score a lot of points but they also give up a lot of points. Obi's variable motor is a real problem, she goes through long periods where she looks uninterested in playing hard. Gayle is a legit bucket but isn't much of a distributor and remains an inefficient scorer. Almqvist can really score if the other team allows her to get to her right hand in the lane, but I'd imagine opposing coaches will solve that quite quickly.
All this is to say whoever comes third behind Columbia and Princeton figures to be well behind.
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